Always and Forever
by boopingsloth
Summary: Between life and death, there is a choice to be made. But when the choices are between what you love most, how do you choose? What do you pick... and what do you leave behind?
Here's a one shot I worked on while in my English class! It didn't go quite the way I expected, but… and just a warning, things might not be super happy and they might seem OOC, but in this situation, this is how I think things would go. Anyway, I own nothing, but I hope you enjoy!

* * *

 _ **Always and Forever**_

He waited for her.

Throughout everything, he'd always waited for Nora to make the decisions. She was the one who reached out to other people, and drove their partnership to greatness.

Every time, Ren waited for Nora to make the first move.

This time however, he was going to have a long wait.

()~~()~~()~~()~~()

 _Ren? Ren, where are you?_

That was always her first concern. Where was Ren? She couldn't do anything without Ren to back her up!

Secondly, where was she? Last she remembered, they were fighting Grimm together and there was this giant Ursa and…

Nora blanched, rubbing her stomach carefully. Had that just been a dream? There was no way she could have healed from such a hit so quickly… and this was not the abandoned city she'd travelled to. No, it was too bright and open and _empty_ …

It was just a giant field of flowers, with too many colors to count; Nora couldn't remember names of some of those colors. There was no civilization, and more importantly, no Ren.

 _Ren!_

Nora froze, looking around uneasily. She was sure she'd yelled that… so why couldn't she hear herself? Why couldn't she hear _anything_?

 _What's going on?_

With an uncomfortable, Nora realized she didn't even have Magnhild with her.

 _No… no, no, no… this can't… I can't…_

She couldn't be dead. Because she was still breathing –she thought- and thinking and she'd _promised_ she would never leave Ren, so she had to be alive.

Nora absolutely refused to be dead.

And since death was not an option, there had to be a way out of here and back to Ren.

 _Ren…_

What was Ren thinking right now? Was he okay? Did he make it out safely?

No. Thinking about Ren would not make any of this easier. She had to focus, to find a way home… but Ren was supposed to help her focus her thoughts. They were a team, they were always supposed to be together and help each other…

 _Nora._

Had she heard that? Had she actually heard something?

Whirling around, Nora smiled, expecting someone who could help her… and then froze.

Standing in front of her was a petite young woman, hands clasped gently in front of her. With her plain dress and hair pulled into a loose bun, she could have been any woman in any town for shopping… except for her eyes.

Nora's eyes.

 _"Mom?"_ Her voice –now she could hear it- seemed so quiet, so far away… so different from normal.

The smile she got in return almost made her cry. She'd forgotten what it had looked like… it had been so long. _"Mom… I'm…"_

 _"You've gotten so big,"_ The woman interrupted easily, softening it with a chuckle. _"And a Huntress? Your father would be so proud."_

 _"He would?"_ Nora hadn't even thought of that… had been so surprised she hadn't even thought of her father. Glancing around, she didn't see anyone else in the field… just the two females. _"Where is Dad?"_

 _"He's no good with all the emotional stuff. Not unless it was something happy for you,"_ The woman's eyes brightened, so much like her daughter's would. _"You remember, if it involved tears…"_

 _"Go to Mom,"_ Nora finished with a small laugh. _"I don't cry much anymore though."_

 _"We know."_ They both grew more serious as Nora looked around again. The flowers were still their only companions in the field, but the peace was less… gentle than it was before. She'd never imagined… How else could she be talking to her mom again, after all these years?

 _"Mom… am I…"_ Nora couldn't finish, biting her lip hard enough to stop it from trembling.

 _"Dead?"_ The word was still gentle, but final and firm. _"No. not yet."_

 _"Yet?"_ If she was dead, she'd rather it be done. Nora would much rather be alive of course, but…

 _"You have to choose."_

Choose. Choose what? Nora's mother waved her hand gently, gesturing to the field around them.

 _"I can choose to live?"_ She could go back to Ren! But… _"Can anyone?"_

 _"No…"_ Her mother was smiling sadly, dimming. In fact, everything was fading and getting darker… _"Time is getting short. Sweetheart, you have to choose."_

 _"But…"_ How could she choose? Between her parents and Ren? How could she do this? How could anyone choose? _"I can't… I can't lose you again…"_

She should stay. Her parents were here after all, and she'd finally talked to her mom again after all this time…

 _You'll never lose me. I've always been here."_ Nora could swear she felt a small tap on her heart. _What do you_ _ **want**_ _to do?"_

 _"I…"_ Mom. Dad. Ren. Peace. Light. Security. Adventure. There was just so much, so much she could lose…

 _"Ren. I want Ren."_ Nora couldn't feel the tears on her cheeks, but Nora knew they were there. _"I love you, I do, but… I… I need…"_

 _"I understand."_ There was no hurt, no judgement in her voice –just pride. _"Go sweetheart. He's waiting for you."_

The woman had nearly faded away, but the proud smile was still visible. _"Mom?"_

 _"You're so strong… we are both so proud of you."_ Even as everything faded, the voice followed Nora quietly. _"Live your life sweetheart… I promise, we'll see each other again. And we'll want to know everything…"_

()~~()~~()~~()~~()

Ren clenched his partner's hand, barely awake. He hadn't slept since Nora's admittance into the hospital, by her side practically every moment.

There was this fear –perhaps and irrational one- that if he left, Nora would slip away forever.

"Mmm…" There was a quiet groan, so quiet Ren wasn't sure if he'd imagined it or not.

"Nora?" Ren whispered, not able to raise his voice anymore than that.

Then, unbelievably, her eyes fluttered. "Nora!"

The girl sighed weakly, her eyes opening slowly. "Ren?"

His partner blinked a few times, smiling slightly. "I saw Mom. We were in a really pretty field. With flowers!"

Ren's stomach sunk. She'd been so close to dying… so far away from him.

"but…" Nora's fingers twitched under his. "You weren't there. And it would have taken you _forever_ to catch up to me… so I came back. I can't let you do everything while I wait!"

Ren couldn't help the relieved chuckle that escaped, raising Nora's hand to his forehead. She'd come back for him… she was still _alive_ …

"I promised." Nora's voice was quiet, reminding Ren that she was probably exhausted after everything they'd gone through. "That I'd never leave you. And I had to… had to…"

"I know." Ren leaned his cheek into Nora's hand. "We're together. Just like you promised."

Nora always kept her promises… no matter what. And as long as Nora kept trying, kept fulfilling her promises, Ren would always wait for her.

Always and forever.

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So, all the italics are because their conversation is happening in-between life and death, so... yeah. That's why there's so many! I hope you guys enjoyed this, and thank you so so much for reading! I'll see you guys in the next story!


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